High Quality Horse Forage - Not Straw

Many of us subscribe to newsletters from theHorse.com.  

I just received the first edition of their Nutrition e-newsletter, which links to an article called Nutritional Value of Forages . This hit one of my hot-buttons - perpetuating the myth that what we need for our horses is poor quality hay. 

The article quotes Jerry Chatterton, PhD, Research Leader of the USDA Agricultural Research Service, Forage and Range Research Laboratory in Logan, Utah:

“Sometimes a little straw filler might be okay,” he said with a smile. In other words, lower-quality forage will keep your horse busy longer, is less likely to make him overweight and/or laminitic, and he’ll eat more of it to get energy--keeping his stomach full and at lower risk of ulcers.

What our horses do need is the best quality horse hay and forage we can afford - not lower quality. Everyone, from growers to veterinarians to horse owners needs to review their definition of high quality forage for horses - which is different than the definition for high quality meat or milk production animal forage. This difference does not make it any lower quality - just different.

Low quality forage (including "straw", which can be extremely high in sugar) or insufficient quantities of forage can cause nutritionally-based problems. By the time you see the signs on the outside - dull coat, lackluster attitude, poor hoof quality - the changes have already occurred on the inside.

High quality horse forage

• Should provide adequate but not excessive DE (digestible energy/calories expressed in Mcal per pound) and protein levels (by grams consumed, not “percent”) suitable for the horse’s age, reproductive status and level of work
• The DE needs to be low enough that the horse can consume sufficient forage to ensure good gut function without taking in too many calories.
• Should provide major minerals at least at the levels known to be required by horses (or have levels that are easily corrected)
• Should smell good, be free of dust, mold or toxins and be palatable to the horse
• Hays from species that are known nitrate accumulators or were grown in stressful conditions should be tested for safe nitrate levels
• Horses may need time to adjust to the taste/smell of a new variety of forage
• Should be tested for “safe” sugar/starch levels for horses who might be prone to IR (insulin resistance) or laminitis
• Not all “fat” horses are IR; not all IR horses are fat
• IR is not a “disease” – it is a metabolic evolution that allowed horses to develop and thrive in harsh conditions

Most of us are learning by now that the only way to accurately determine if a hay or forage is appropriate for our horse is to have it tested (see Analyzing Hay and Feeds) and using the results to determine if corrections are needed. While sugar and starch in forage, as emphasized in the article, are important for metabolically challenged horses, there is a lot more you need to know about the nutritional value of the forage you give your horse. What works for your pasture ornament may be inadequate in many ways for your performance horse, and what works for your performance horse when he is training/working might set him up for laminitis when he's idle. 

Forage testing (even if only done as "spot checks" for an idea of what you're feeding if you can't store large quantities of hay) is cheap insurance - at $30 to $50, a lot less than a vet bill. "Correcting" excesses and deficiencies by targeted mineral balancing can be done economically - often for a lot less than buying an "off the shelf" standard supplement which may or may not provide what's needed (and often adds a lot of "stuff" that's not needed).

So - when looking at forage for your horse, think in terms of the "best" quality you can afford. Take words like "rich" out of your vocabulary; they tell you nothing about your hay. Forget "old", "last year's", "poor quality" and "straw" when trying to find low sugar/starch hay.

Think in terms of how many Mcal your horse needs per day, how many grams of protein he needs, and calcium/phosphorus balance based on test results, not on whether it's "grass" or "alfalfa". Look and test for sugar plus starch equal to 10% or less for an IR or laminitic horse - low sugar/starch does not mean compromising on energy, protein or quality. Avoid excessively high iron levels in forage if you can - it may be an indication of poorly maintained fields or high surface contamination, and has been shown to be "pro-inflammatory". 

You can figure your horse's requirements in many places (see the  Analyzing Hay and Feeds article), find out what your forage supplies from the test results, then the rest is just addition and subtraction. (Well, maybe not "just" but not rocket science either. You might want to try on Dr. Kellon's basic nutrition class - NRC Plus - for starters.)

And use the straw for bedding your cows and goats.

Winter Water Needs for Our Horses

As cold weather approaches (and already here for those in the North), we need to continue to pay attention to our horses' water intake. Horses who are used to obtaining some of their fluid from grasses may not increase their water intake as pastures brown up or as their winter ration begins to include more cured hay. 

Risks of Lowered Water Intake

Impaction colic, related to a diet of drier forage coupled with lessened water consumption is not the only risk to horses who drink less in cooler weather. Dehydration may also expose horses to increased respiratory problems. While I could find no direct equine references, in humans, dehydration is associated with poor mucus mobilization and clearance, with a lessening of a critical airway defense mechanism. (http://ajrcmb.atsjournals.org/cgi/content/full/35/1/20)

Requirement

The maintenance water intake for an adult non-working horse is around 5 L per 100 kg/BW (NRC 2007, p132). This translates to about 1.3 gallons for each 220 lbs your horse weighs. You can figure your horse's minimum requirement by dividing his weight by 220, then multiplying by 1.3, or you can find the closest weight in the chart below.

Horse’s Weight	Minimum Daily Water Requirement
220 lbs	1.3 gallons
440 lbs	2.6 gallons
660 lbs	3.9 gallons
880 lbs	5.2 gallons
1000 lbs	5.9 gallons
1100 lbs	6.5 gallons
1320 lbs	7.8 gallons
1540 lbs	9.1 gallons

These requirements are increased by dry, windy or warm weather conditions, work or lactation. 

Work Related Fluid Losses

Most of us are aware that working horses lose water in sweat during work but don't always consider that substantial moisture is also lost from the respiratory tract. Unless you weigh your horse before and after work, it may be easy to underestimate the amount of total fluid loss in cool, dry conditions when sweat may evaporate quickly. It's important that you become familiar with signs that may indicate dehydration - elevated heart rate or poor heart rate recovery, elevated respiratory (breathing) rate, dry mucous membranes, skin tenting - and to know what's normal for your horse.

Lactating Mares

Mares with suckling foals are providing fluid for two and their water requirements are two to three times normal maintenance needs. These requirements are also increased by warm, dry or windy conditions.

Monitoring Water Intake

If you use automatic waterers or floats, it's impossible to measure water intake unless they are fitted with a meter. A horse may also become dehydrated if the auto waterer should freeze or malfunction.

 

If you notice your horses' water intake dropping off, it may be necessary to warm their water either by adding a heater (with a GFI electrical circuit for their protection) or by adding warm or hot water to their tanks or buckets.

The Role of Salt

Sodium and Chloride (NaCl or "salt") play critical roles  in the body's metabolism and are tightly regulated in the blood. Because blood levels are so tightly regulated, standard tests may not indicate a sodium deficiency at the cellular level. When ingested salt levels are low, the body will respond by pulling salt from interstitial fluid into the bloodstream, and by increasing the reabsorption of sodium by the kidneys. (For details on some of the mechanisms involved in sodium regulation, see http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/sodium/index.html)

Feeding salt on a regular basis at the NRC recommended levels helps ensure an adequate thirst response. After the interstitial fluid has reached an equilibrium, excess sodium, in the absence of disease, will be excreted by the kidneys.

The minimum requirement for sodium in a 1,000 lb horse ranges from 9 grams at maintenance, 16 grams in moderate work, to 37 grams in very heavy work. This is roughly equivalent to a range of from 1 to 3+ ounces of salt per day.  Forages may supply as little as 1 to 2 grams of sodium per day. The best way to making up the sodium deficit is by adding salt directly to the feed. If using a salt block, the amount of sodium it provides should be calculated and the horse's consumption monitored to ensure adequate intake.

 These requirements remain steady except when accounting for sweat loss during work - which can cause large increases. Many "commercial" electrolyte formulas contain high levels of potassium but insufficient sodium and chloride - you should have an understanding of what you actually need before simply adding electrolytes (and never give electrolytes to an already dehydrated horse).

A well hydrated horse will more easily handle the extremes of winter weather and activity. Taking the time to monitor his water intake can set your mind at ease, knowing that you've minimized his risk for cold-weather related colic and respiratory problems.

Why Weigh Feed?

I was browsing through some messages on the Equine Cushings and IR group when I came across this - 

Can someone also put the emergency diet in laymens terms (cups/flakes). I don't have a weight scale and not sure what things weigh. 

The Emergency Diet - for those unfamiliar with it - is a short term low sugar-low starch maintenance ration for horses experiencing laminitis or suspected of being insulin resistant. It was developed by Eleanor Kellon, VMD and is meant to be a temporary diet to safely help your horse through the critical acute period while you, the owner, catch your breath and start getting a correct diagnosis.

So why is it important to weigh your horse's hay, feed and supplements? 

The entire concept of determining equine nutritional needs, then meeting their requirements with forage is based on weight. Weight of the horse and weight of the forage and feed.

A 1,000 lb horse at maintenance (just hanging around the corral looking pretty) needs a minimum of 15 mega calories (Mcal, or 15,000 Calories) every day. A 250 pound mini needs only 3.8 Mcal, a working ranch horse might use up 24 or more Mcal a day when he's working.

A general rule of thumb is to provide a horse with 1.5 to 2% of it's body weight in forage (hay or hay plus pasture). That would be around 15 lbs of hay for the pasture ornament, 3-3/4 lbs for the mini, and at least 20 lbs a day for the ranch horse. 

Working with horses since before he could walk, the cowboy knows his horse is going to get skinny on 20 lbs of hay. While he might not be consciously doing the math, he knows his horse will need to be knee deep in grass hay and will probably benefit from something "extra" - more calories, higher protein, more carbs - so will also give him a bit of alfalfa and a measure of oats. Is he using a scale? No - but when your livelihood (and possibly your life) depend on the health of your partner, you've likely developed a keen eye and feel for how much is enough, too much or too little.

A lot of us don't have the life-long horseman/horsewoman's eye.

Let's take my weekend warrior who's a bit on the chubby side. I "know" an average bale of Bermuda hay in Arizona weighs around 100 lbs, +/- 5-10 lbs or so, and that if I split a bale over two days for three horses, they're getting around 16 lbs of hay a day.   That will work - as long as the hay is pretty "average", around 0.8 to 0.9 Mcal per lb. But, when I look at my "herd" of three, I see I'm actually feeding around 2550 lbs of horse (1000 lb mare, 900 lb gelding, 650 lb pony gelding) and they, collectively, only need around 38 Mcal/day.

And this last load of hay is really nice - almost 110 lbs per bale and the horses really like it.  My horses are fat and sassy - uh oh, did I say fat?  I weigh my "flakes" of hay - each one is closer to 9 lbs than the 5 or 6 lbs I have in my mind. So I cut back one flake per day (I've been putting out six). 

 I could probably have figured this out without a scale - but it made it easier. Like most horse owners, I tend to think along the lines of "Am I feeding them enough?" rather than "Am I giving them too much?" And, without a scale, I typically under-estimate the weight of the hay I am feeding (and this has been my experience with almost all the folks I have worked with).

Let's look at the mini. Our kind of average grass hay has around 8.5 Mcal/lb. The mini needs around 3.8 Mcal - if he's fairly active in a good size paddock. That works out to 4-1/2 lbs of hay a day - and nothing else (no concentrates, no grain, no treats). What if your "flake" weighs 5 lbs and you give him a whole flake every day? 

Over a week, that's an extra 3 Mcal, almost a whole day's ration. Over a year, that's an extra 155 Mcal - or enough to maintain your mini for over a month! You could have enjoyed your mini for 13 months for the same cost as 12 months, and he would be healthier!

One last example - as this is where we see a lot of folks get into trouble.

Your vet tells you to put your cresty necked 1100 lb horse on a diet. You, or your vet, interpret this as feeding less - a lot less - to lose weight. That's how people do it, right? So you cut back to two "flakes" of hay/day, plus a little senior feed to provide some vitamins and minerals.

What's wrong with this picture?

Your two 5-1/2 lb flakes provide 11 lbs of forage, or only 1% of your horse's body weight. This is not sufficient gut fill to avoid problems such as colic or maintaining immune function - your horse needs a minimum of 1.5% BW in forage to lose weight safely - or 16-1/2 lbs of forage (hay) a day. To see the disastrous results of using a "starvation" diet to get a horse to lose weight, read Perla's Story.

The hay needs to be low sugar-low starch - preferably less than 10%, with a DE of 0.9 or less (alfalfa, many small grain hays and some grass hays will exceed this - have your hay analyzed to find out the DE). 

Your horse does not need any "concentrate" feed at all (grain, "senior" feed, "complete" feed, etc.) as they likely contain too much sugar/starch and won't supply the necessary level of minerals and vitamins unless fed at the minimum levels shown on the product label (usually around 2 lbs/day or more for an "average" horse). 

Your horse does need minerals at least at the minimum levels recommended by the NRC or, even better, balanced to a hay analysis, plus some vitamins if not eating fresh forage/grass. As an interim measure, an iron-free supplement, such as the flax-based supplements from HorseTech, can provide basic support until you have hay analyzed and determine your horse's specific needs. A small amount of soaked beet pulp or hay pellets can be used as a "supplement carrier".

Basic requirements are available in tables at Equi-Analytical's website, or at the NRC's online program.  Neither the tables nor the online calculator tell you how to interpret or balance the results, and they both give you only minimum requirements - similar to the human "RDA", not the levels recommended for optimal health.

You can learn more by checking out the other articles and links on this blog. Joining the Equine Cushings and IR group will give you access to a wealth of science-based information that's been developed over the years, as well as support if your horse is currently laminitic (or suspected of having laminitis). Eleanor Kellon, VMD has begun offering a series of online equine nutrition courses, from the very basic through nutrition for the elite equine athlete, which you can complete at your own pace.

My own bit of cynicism -

I am always amazed at the folks who will pay large sums for the right tack, a new truck or trailer, correct riding clothes, but balk at $30 for a good scale, $26 for a hay analysis or taking the few hours to have someone help them to "learn the math".

Obviously, if you've read down this far, you aren't one of them. But, because you obviously care for your equine partner, you are vulnerable to any and all of the magic bullets offered to make us think we are doing the best for our horses. 

Your strongest weapon - and best resource - is knowledge. It's out there - I hope this helps you navigate the map but then its up to you to use it.

Pete Ramey - Equine Nutrition Warrior

Barefoot Hoof Guru Pete Ramey has been taking Eleanor Kellon, VMD's basic nutrition course, NRC Plus.  Pete has enlivened the discussion on this online program - coining the title Equine Nutrition Warrior - and recently summarized his experience on his web site in an article called Feeding the Hoof.

“I got so much out of the "NRC Plus"course- I can’t wait for the others. Join me in the “Equine Cushings/Insulin Resistance” and “Nutrition as Therapy” classes this fall. We’ll get better for our horses together.”  Pete

Dr. Kellon presented the first NRC Plus basic ("basic" being a bit of an understatement) course this past spring and so far, close to 250 students - ranging from single horse owners to breeders and trainers to veterinarians and nutritionists - and yes, farriers and hoof trimmers - have enrolled in the basic and advanced courses. You can see all of the course listings at drkellon.com (some of the advanced courses do have prerequisites).